Gold Dollars

The United States Gold Dollar Coin was authorized by the Act of March 3,
1849. The weight was set at 25.8 grains with .900 fineness. There were three
types of the gold dollar coin struck by the United States Mint between 1849 and
1889.

Quarter Eagles ($2.50)

The Quarter Eagle is a gold US coin authorized by the Act of April 2,
1792. The first issue was produced in 1796 with a weight of 67.5 grains and
.9167 fineness. They were struck in several different types until 1907 with most
dates before 1834 being

Three-Dollar Gold Pieces

The Three-Dollar Gold Piece was authorized by the Act of February 21, 1853
and the first coin was produced in 1854.
One theory about why a $3 gold coin was created is for purchasing postage stamps
which were 3 cents when the three-dollar gold piece was produced.
The coin was not popular with the public and didn't see much circulation,
however it was popular with collectors which is why numerous Mint State examples
are fairly common today.
An Indian Princess crowned with a circle of feathers adorns the obverse or front
of the coin. The band of the headdress is inscribed with the word LIBERTY.
The back of the coin depicts a wreath of tobacco, wheat, corn and cotton, with
the denomination and the date within it.

Four-Dollar Gold Pieces

The Four-Dollar Gold Piece, also known as a Stella (Latin for star)
because of the five-pointed star on the reverse, was a pattern coin that was
proposed to Congress, along with several other patterns, as a possible coin for
international commerce.

Congress decided, however, that the Double Eagle with a $20 face value,
already in use in international commerce, was more convenient than a
denomination of $4 which didn't match any of the coin's European counterparts.

The Four-Dollar Gold Piece, or Stella, was never minted in quantities for
circulation. There were two distinct types of four-dollar gold pieces, Flowing
Hair and Coiled Hair, each issued for two years, 1879 and 1880.

The coins with an 1879 date were made for congressmen to examine and the 1880
dates were made secretly by Mint officials and sold to private collectors.

Both types of coins were struck as patterns in gold, aluminum, copper and
white metal.

Of the four varieties of Stellas produced, the most common is the 1879
Flowing Hair type. Between 300-400 of these coins are known to exist. The other
three varieties are extremely rare with only a few coins of each known to exist.

Half Eagles ($5)

The Half Eagle is a $5 Gold US Coin that was authorized by the Act of
April 2, 1792. It was the first gold coin actually struck for the United
States.

Eagles ($10)

The Eagle is a $10 Gold US Coin that was authorized by the Act of
April 2, 1792. It was produced by United States Mints from 1795 to 1933, except
for the years 1805 to 1837.

Double Eagles ($20)

The $20 double eagle gold US coin was first minted as a pattern coin
in 1849. The first coin produced for general circulation was made in 1850.

Gold Bullion Coins

Gold Bullion Coins are modern US gold coins also known as American
Eagle Gold Coins that were authorized by the Bullion Coin Act of 1985. They were
first produced by the United States Mint in 1986.